Donald and Melania Trump to attend Kennedy Center's opening night of Les Misérables

USA Today

2 days ago

WASHINGTON ― President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump are set to attend the opening-night showing of the musical Les Misérables at the Kennedy Center next week, making a rare public appearance in Washington's nightlife by visiting the cultural institution Trump controversially took over.
The White House confirmed the first couple's attendance to USA TODAY. But they won't be seeing all of the musical's cast members, some of whom plan to sit out of the show that night, CNN and the Washington Post reported.
Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance will also attend the same showing of Les Misérables, Fox News reported. The musical debuts at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on June 11 and runs through July 13.
"I love the songs, I love the play," Trump told Fox News on June 3 after The Atlantic first reported on the plans to attend Les Misérables. "I think it's great ‒ we may extend it."
Les Misérables, set in early 19th-century France, tells the story of French peasant Jean Valjean, an ex-convict who struggles to find redemption after 19 years in prison. Trump is known to have "Do you hear the people sing? ‒ one of the musical's most famous songs about everyday people rising up against injustices ‒ playing as he enters for campaign rallies.
For JD Vance, his attendance at the Kennedy Center comes after he was loudly booed and jeered while attending a National Symphony Orchestra performance at the center in March.
Just weeks into his second White House term, Trump ousted the Kennedy Center's leadership in February and named himself board chairman after complaining about "woke" programming and "drag shows" at the center. He named top ally Ric Grenell, his envoy for special missions, as the Kennedy Center's new president.
But Trump's takeover has sparked a significant backlash.
Acts such as actress Issa Rae and the Broadway hit "Hamilton" canceled previously scheduled Kennedy Center performances in response to Trump's takeover. And the center has experienced a nosedive in yearly subscriptions.
The Washington Post reported sales of subscriptions for the next season of programming at the Kenny Center have plummeted by 36%, down about $1.6 million in revenue from subscription sales to theater, dance, classical and other seasons of performance from the same point in 2014.
Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.